The rusty-patched bumble bee (Bombus affinis) was once widespread across the eastern United States but has experienced a dramatic decline and range contraction in recent decades. A recent study (Mola et al. 2024) identified three genetically distinct clusters among remaining populations, aligned along an east-to-west gradient. I am currently analyzing genetic structure from pre-decline museum specimens (1960–1990) to determine whether this pattern emerged as a result of the species' decline or reflects long-standing genetic differentiation that predates it.

I am also studying bumble bee ecology and responses to anthropogenic stressors. My current project aims to understand how the timing of resources influences bumble bee colony success and reproductive performance, and how these may differ in different landscape contexts (urban vs rural spaces). A large part of this work was learning how to rear bumble bee colonies in the lab from wild-caught queens - an exciting endeavor!

As an undergraduate and post-baccalaureate researcher at the University of Minnesota, I studied butterfly-parasite interactions involving Pteromalus wasps and tachinid flies. 

Relevant Publications: Tachinid Fly (Diptera: Tachinidae) Parasitoids of Danaus plexippus (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae)